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If the poor can be jailed for stealing fruit, what about Munir's killer

Detik.com - November 11, 2009

Anwar Khumaini, Jakarta – The wife of the late human rights defender Munir, has lamented the application of the law in Indonesia, saying the state only prosecutes the poor.

Suciwati made the remark during a press conference at the Indonesian Human Rights Watch (Imparsial) offices on Jl. Diponegoro in Central Jakarta on Tuesday November 24. Suciwati said that a grandmother called Minah in Purwokerto, Central Java, was a case in point.

"The law is just applied to poor people only," related Suciwati. "Just look at the case of Ibu Minah, she picked three cocoa fruits and was prosecuted by the law. Meanwhile the corrupters and Munir's killer are left untouched", added Suciwati.

Suciwati explained how rotten the law is in Indonesia because it is selective in how it deals with cases.

Related to the murder of her husband, Suciwati has not yet lost hope that it will soon be solved. The Attorney General's Office has been asked to immediately submit a judicial review over the release of former State Intelligence Agency deputy Muchdi Purwoprandjono.

"We are calling for the judicial review to be submitted immediately", said the slender woman. (anw/nrl)

[Translated by James Balowski.]

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